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Walmart workers protested this week, stepping up their demands, calling for $15 an hour and full-time hours. The protests were in New York City, Washington D.C. and Pheonix. One of the Walmart workers from Cincinnati who earns $8.75 an hour and participated in the protest said, “I can’t afford anything. Sometimes I can’t afford soap, toothpaste, tissue. Sometimes I have to go without washing my clothes.”

Safety should always be the number one concern in any working environment, but that hasn't been the case in Bangladesh. Good news is that enough public pressure has pushed companies to inspect close to 1,700 clothing factories in Bangladesh.

Vice President Joe Biden joined Los Angeles politicians in support of Mayor Eric Garcetti's plan to raise the minimum wage. He called a minimum wage hike the building block of a stronger economy, and the "bare minimum that we should be doing to re-establish economic growth in this country."Biden backs Garcetti plan to boost minimum wage to $13.25 by 2017 - LA Times

Walmart should take that advice and provide better wages for their workers, but instead they've decided to no longer provide health insurance for their part-time employees. The company will terminate healthcare insurance for associates who work less than 30 hours a week. It's estimated that about 30,000 workers will be affected by the healthcare termination on January 1. Walmart to End Health Coverage for 30,000 Part-Time Workers - New York Times

But the fight for $15 continues after a year of local leaders took action to raise wages across the country. Seattle lead the way by raising its minimum wage to $15 an hour during a wave of activism, and then not long after the LA City Council voted to raise wages for workers at large hotels to $15.37 an hour.

At a time when the middle class is struggling and workers aren't reaping the fruits of their labor. We all can find hope that populism is alive and well. Ken Burns’s 14-hour PBS documentary “The Roosevelts” in so many ways reminds us that we are living in a country shaped by FDR, and that his legacy will live on in this new generation of populist movements.

"No business which depends for existence on paying less than living wages to its workers has any right to continue in this country," FDR once said. Unfortunately, many businesses in the U.S. pay far less than a living wage, but hope is not lost. The fight for $15 an hour was won yesterday for those working in Los Angeles at large hotels. Workers will soon make $15.37 an hour, which is among the highest minimum wage hikes in the country.

Companies have worked very hard to keep costs low and that includes their labor expenses, which is why wages continue to remain stagnated and productivity continues to rise. The minimum wage hasn't increased in years, allowing businesses to get away with paying low wages, keeping people in poverty. The financial times interviewed economists from across the political spectrum on their ideas to jump-start wage increases. Economists from across the political spectrum offer their ideas to jump-start wage growth - Financial Times